Coffee enthusiasts and passive-aggressive lonely types may have spotted Tryst‘s take on Craigslist’s Missed Connections (and, okay, Washington City Paper’s I Saw You) on the Adams Morgan joint’s website: “I Saw You At Tryst.”

A typical post:

From: MCDREAMY 11.04.07 9:20 AM
Message for: WAITRESS
Your unicorn tattoo on your bosoms makes me daydream of latte lovemaking and espresso ecstasy…

I will momentarily ignore the fact that this service allows patrons to surreptitiously harrass servers at their workplace. Still, Tryst’s take on web hook-ups dips into shadier territory than even most vehicles of online preying. First, the board averages less than two posts a month: So far in 2007, a mere 19 postings have appeared on the site. So unlike Craigslist’s quick turnover of workplace crushes and metro stare-downs, if you decide to “See” someone at Tryst, they’ll be able to see that you saw themfor several months after the fact (One of MCDREAMY’s posts has been on display for 57 days; the above creation has been up a little over a month). This increases the likelihood that your post will be spotted by your vintage-couch-dweller of choice, but it also amps up the awkward level. If you see somebody at Tryst, you better mean it.

More disturbing, however, is that given the high laptop activity in the place, missed lust connections at Tryst can be posted while the voyeur is still inside the coffee shop. Often, “I Saw You at Tryst” is actually “I See You at Tryst.”

“GREEN HOODIE” presents a typical instant pine:

You’re under the spotlight… You with your MacBook and your hipster glasses. I think you’re amazing in your intensity. I only wish I could interrupt you and say hi.

It’s unclear how much of this is a joke. But if these people are for real, I have one question: Is it really more embarrassing to converse with a human being than to watch an amazingly intense hipster close up their MacBook and switch couches when they catch your virtual gaze?